Panera Bread — Restaurant in Muhlenberg Township

I live one mile from the Exeter Panera Bread; however, I drive to the Temple store regularly to sit with my laptop, have a quiet cup of coffee and then, when I'm ready, I use the app to order breakfast from my phone. I much prefer this Temple location. I've NEVER entered a store where I've felt more welcome. Kevin and Jonathan welcome you with a bright "hello" and the most genuine smiles - a smile you can FEEL. And John, one of the managers there, who I've talked to multiple times, is so very nice, too. It is obvious why they have such a big group of "regulars" who come here. I see many of the same people here every time I go, which is usually once or twice a week, (I split my visits between the Temple and the Wyomissing locations.) The restaurant floor and tables/booths are clean, the coffee station is always well stocked, and the bathrooms are nice and clean, too. They definitely do their best to provide a welcoming, calm, and clean atmosphere. And, very importantly, the food is good and plated with care - not just thrown on the plate haphazardly. I've never had a bad meal here. The managers at this location are to be congratulated!

Also, I want to applaud the Sip Club that Panera offers. Get it! I am a year-long member and it is SO worth it! Love the agave lemonade and the blueberry lavender lemonade - just the right amount of sweet/tart without the super high calories found in the lemonades of the standard variety fast-food joints. They are just so good. I also go through the drive-thru a couple times a week for my lemonade fix.

A note about the Wyomissing location - also a great store. Quiet, clean, and seemingly well run. Good food and coffee - again I've not ever had a bad meal here. Larry and Tina are quite friendly and I enjoy seeing them every time I go in. The seating set-up at this restaurant is so cozy and comfortable. I've noticed that this location also has its share of regular visitors who I see every time I'm there. This speaks volumes!

I do not appreciate employees being rowdy, carrying-on, and joking loudly behind the line - like I've witnessed multiple times at the Exeter location. I've not encountered this dynamic at the Temple or Wyomissing locations. I've also personally poured curdled milk out of the half-'n-half carafe at the Exeter store, too, early am. I actually walked out of the Exeter location early in the morning about a week ago after getting my coffee because the carpeted floors and every booth was filthy with crumbs, chips, and unwiped tables. After I saw that the first booth I walked up to was littered with crumbs and broken chips, I walked around the whole dining area and couldn't find a booth that was clean. I decided to leave and went to the Temple location. I told the lady at the front desk about the filth before I left. The night shift should be vacuuming the entire store and cleaning before they leave and I do hope they will make this a priority going forward. Cleaning a table top involves more than using a rag to throw all the crumbs on the table onto the floor (or onto the seats) before spraying something out of a plastic bottle over the table and whisking a rag across it. You have to put some pressure and effort into it to get the sticky stuff off. And use a clean cloth! I would love to be able to visit my local store, but many improvements are...

I ordered a bagel in the drive thru- ONE simple bagel. Sliced and toasted. It came back so unevenly sliced the bread broke in half because it was too thin and the bread was BURNT. I wish I would’ve taken a picture. So that’s one. #2 I came back around the drive thru and THE ENTIRE STAFF INCLUDING THE MANAGER. Did not want to wait on me or open the drive thru window to even see what I wanted KNOWING I had just ordered. But sometimes you kill things with grace and leave a review after. The way they looked at me made me know that because I am black they expected I. Would be disrespectful. In fact I was nothing like that, I waited for 10 minutes out there until they were forced to open the window because a car came up behind me for their order. Then when I got helped the driveway girl said “well we didn’t know you were there because you didn’t stop at the drive thru window so next time do that.” I replied, “My love I seen all of you looking at me through the window, but you know hopefully this doesn’t happen “NEXT” time.” That’s it. Kill them with kindness, but just know this is not the first time I have had a terrible experience with my food at this Panera. 0/10 would not recommend. Learn to offer the service your company culture...

We've always liked Panera food. This particular store is a different story. We've ordered food there 5 or 6 times & have never received our correct order yet. Additionally, they skimp on the meat in the sandwiches, never fill the soup bowls more than 3/4 of the way, and CAN NOT put a sandwich together correctly. The last we were there, we ordered cheese on our sandwiches. My husband made it a point to ask the employee who made the sandwiches if she remembered to put cheese on them. She cheerfully replied that yes, She had! In fact there was NO cheese on either sandwich. There was a container that contained a single slice of cheese, cut in half! This is the WORST Panera we've ever...